Water

Water has five properties. It is universal, meaning almost everything dissolves in water. It has less dense as a solid…ice floats. For example, lakes freeze from the top than down, the temperature inside the water is much warmer than the outside temperature. It has a high specific heat; it takes energy to change the temperature of the water because it absorbs and releases energy very slowly. For instance, our body’s temperature is constant, whether it is very cold in the winter or very hot in the summer. It constantly stays the same; for example, 98.8 degrees Fahrenheit or 37 degrees Celsius, there will be no chang­es at all. It has a high tensile strength; it is very hard molecule, for its particles stick together very tightly. For example, if a person lands on water facing his or her stomach down, he or she does not sink, but rather they would stay on the surface. It also has a high heat of evapo­ration; an example of it is when people run, they heat up, and their body would react by sweating, then this water of sweating cools them down. Water is made up of combination of three mol­ecules, one oxygen atom and two hydro­gen atoms (H2O). However, the surface of the earth is about 75% water, only 1% is drinkable water, 97% is salt seawater and 2% is frozen water in ice caps.

Benefits and Facts

Water is the cornerstone of life; it is an essential base of our daily life. All living beings’ life depends on water. No body can count all the benefits that living beings acquire from water. Water is what makes human body to maintain health; it controls bodily heats, assists to excrete toxic substances through perspi­ration and urination. More quality water we drink is more healthier that our body would be. It is water that keeps our mus­cles to maintain stronger, without drink­ing enough water our bones, muscles, and also our whole body system gets weaker. Besides, we would lose weight without drinking stable amount of water, which could lead us into Chronic Cel­lular Dehydration that could cause our body to be weakened and to be suscep­tible to be affected. For that reason, our immune system would be paralyzed and suppressed; thus, our health would be in danger. We inhale and/or exhale water by means of oxygen from the air, which 75% of its surface is water. In ad­dition, all the chemical reactions in our body occur in water as a result of that we exhale carbon dioxide. Plus more than portion of our body is water. As mentioned in the Qur’an, the Muslim Sacred book, the whole life is made from water.

Dehydration kills us faster than the famine and hunger. It is recommended that average person should drink about couple glasses of water everyday, some say eight ounce of water. In order for one to maintain healthy and function well mentally he or she should drink enough water so that his or her brain would work properly. Human joints need more water to do their work right; as an example, water makes the joints to obtain lubrication, so that they can remain in mois­ture and avoid frictions.

We inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide, so our lungs would remain moistures; otherwise, it gets stiff and cannot take O2 and CO2 in and out. Our Kidneys take out waste products from our body; for example, uric acid and lactic acid, so in order for these waste products to be taken away from the body, they have to dissolve in with water. Our back is supported by spinal cord, and liquid-water is stored in it. Thus, if there is no water in its system, it could not make movements, which allows us to move and do the work.

Beyond that, is the pregnant woman; she needs more water than any other person, from day one when she starts having morning sickness up to when she gives birth. Even though she needs water all the time as any other person, she requires more water during her gesta­tion period. In addition, some part of her fetus’s cell’s growth depends on how much water and nutrients, she has consumed. Hence, water allows her to transfer the nutrient from her body to her fetus. Water helps the mother to excrete the waste products easily and avoid constipation, which usually is common during gesta­tion period. Amniotic fluid (the cover of the baby) is mostly water. Suppose the mother drinks more quality water, the chance of having a health baby is higher than when she does not drink enough quality of water. Plus the baby would receive enough milk from her after parturition.

Furthermore, in many cases a lot of food that people eat depends on water. When there is plenty of rain, the land becomes prosper so all living creatures in­cluding humans would have something to eat. On the other hand, if there is a drought, there would be no crops, which almost the partial of the world’s popula­tion depends on it. The drought causes starvation and hunger; it could cause the lack of milk and meat from the animals who most people’s daily lives depend on them. Animals’ lives are also based on water as people do, thus without rain, they would not maintain a life and in turn, people would not receive neither meat nor milk from the animals.

With water, we purify ourselves; we wash in water, swim, and cook from it. Because of water, we remove the toxin and poison from what we eat. Besides, almost everything we drink or eat is related water to some extent; for instant, according to researchers, the milk we drink is about 83% water, the watermelon 84%; Diet Coke contains 98% water, and many other juices that we drink.

Moreover, all the reactions that happen in our body occur in water. Hydrologists denoted that the diges­tive system requires water. For example, our main body component of blood plasma is 92% water, the human fetus, which is the growing physical vehicle is 90% water. The blood, which conveys our fluid and nutrient to our body, is 90%, water. Brain, which is the center and controller of our whole body, is 85% water. Similarly, a kidney which makes the process and refreshment of fluid in our body system is 82%, water. Muscles are the primary movers of our body, and 75% of it is water. Liver that metabolizes and re­moves the toxin from our body and about 69% of it is water; the structural supporters of our body system are bones that contain 22% water.

As above examples illustrates without water these organs could not do their work. Water allows and makes easy for our body to transfer the food, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and all the other chemical reactions that take place internal and external of our body. Overall, 70% of our body is water. For example, if a person’s weight is 200bl and step on scale about 120 of that weight is water. On the other hand, when it comes to lose weight, water is very significant be­cause it does not contain calories, cholesterols, and its sodium is pretty low. Thus, a person can lose weight easily just by urinating and sweating.

Islam

As Qur’an talked about everything that has some value for human life, it clearly stated in number of times the importance of water; thus life originally made from water according to the Qur’an. “Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were joined together as one united piece, then we parted them? And We have made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?” (21:30).

We conclude from the verse life starts with water, means without water, there would be no life on earth in the first place. Now, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, (NASA) is exploring other planets to see whether it had been water in the past, so that human beings may live there one day. Scientists understand now if place like mars had water; it had been a life sometimes in the past, recognizing that life depends and originated on water, which Allah (God) stated numerous times in the Qur’an over centuries ago.

In terms of creation Adam was the first human, and he was created from clay mixed with water. Allah the Almighty said, “And indeed We created man (Adam) out of an extract of clay (water and earth)” (23: 12). It means that our life started with water so we partially water if not whole. Eve was the second human, Allah created her from Adam’s last rib. Eve and Adam married, and Allah gave them many children to populate the earth. Allah said, “And it is He Who has created man from water, and has appointed for him kindred by blood, and kindred by marriage. And your Lord is Ever All-Powerful to do what He wills” (25:54). As any other living creatures, our life’s beginning point was water. The offspring were created the combination of male and female sexual discharge (semen). In here Allah said, “So let man see from what he is created! He is created from a water gush­ing forth, proceeding from between the backbone and ribs” (86:5-6-7). Humans are coming from the semen from their fathers’ backbone and semen from their mothers’ clavicle (the collarbone), this was our first develop­mental stage. Thus, the lives of all living creatures rely on water to some extent.

On the other hand, Qur’an stated in details the sig­nificant of water to our daily lives. We purify ourselves with water, swim, drink, shower, and cook from it. It rains to all living things not only for humans, so they would have prospers and good life. Animals eat from the rain; thus, humans would consume more meat and plenty of milk from the animals. Allah said, “And it is He Who sends the winds as heralds of glad tidings, going before His Mercy (rain); and We send down pure water from the sky” (25:48).When all the grasses, fruits, and trees become dry, which has no shadow, or any other things to use, it is the rain that makes them alive and re-grow them back again so that they reproduce once again. Here another verse Allah said, “That We may give life thereby to a dead land, and We give to drink thereof many of the cattle and men that We had created” (25:49). It ex­plains when rain rains; it could bring back the grass and vegetables, which was ruined by the droughts. Again in the Qur’an Allah said, “See you not that Allah sends down water (rain) from the sky, and We produce there­with fruits of varies colours” (35:27). Rain produces the crops, leaves from the trees, and green grass from the land, which are our biggest sources on earth. Qur’an has furnished centuries and centuries ago the essence of water to living beings and especially to human life. Unfortunately, certain people are either ignoring it or do not want to appreciate the bounty of Allah, in which He gave them. Then as result, people are draw­ing pictures on the water’s surface, which will never be visible to our sights. It means, when one is looking for an answer, which he or she did not understand its question in the first place.

Reference:

1. Batmanghelidj, F, M.D. “Why do we need to drink water?” Harmonik Ireland and the